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Summary of "Measuring and Retaining the U.S. Army's Deployment Experience"

Core Content

The document provides an analysis of the U.S. Army's deployment experience from September 2001 to December 2012, focusing on the amount of deployment experience retained within the Army and its components. It highlights the challenges of maintaining this experience as the number of deployments declines and as soldiers leave the service.

Key Findings

• The U.S. Army provided 1.65 million cumulative deployed troop-years from September 2001 to December 2012, more than all other services combined.
• By December 2012, the Army had lost approximately 40 percent of its deployment experience, with the remaining 60 percent residing in the Regular Army, Army National Guard of the United States (ARNGUS), and U.S. Army Reserve (USAR).
• The Regular Army contributed 70 percent, the ARNGUS contributed 21 percent, and the USAR contributed 9 percent of the total deployment experience.
• The yearly number of deployed troop-years peaked in 2009 at just over 180,000, but declined to 100,000 in 2012 due to the end of combat operations in Iraq and the expected end of operations in Afghanistan.
• Approximately 20–35 percent of soldiers separating from the Regular Army affiliate with the Selected Reserve (SELRES), allowing the Army to retain some of the deployment experience.
• About 17 percent of the deployment experience in the SELRES was acquired during soldiers' previous service in the Regular Army.
• Roughly 71 percent of all Regular Army soldiers had deployed at least once by December 2012, with a significant portion having multiple deployments.
• The percentage of soldiers transitioning to the ARNGUS or USAR has been declining, leading to a loss of valuable deployment experience.
• The Army is losing deployment experience not only through personnel leaving but also due to the decline in new deployments.
• The loss of deployment experience is expected to continue, with the Army potentially losing more than half of its accrued experience over the next five years if current trends persist.

Main Points

• Deployment Experience Metric: The document uses the troop-year metric to measure collective deployment experience, which accounts for the total months of deployment across all soldiers.
• Experience Distribution: Soldiers who have deployed multiple times show a peak in deployment experience between 9 and 13 months, indicating that most soldiers have deployed once or twice.
• Retention Challenges: The Army faces a challenge in retaining deployment experience due to declining deployments and increased separations. Soldiers with deployment experience often do not affiliate with the SELRES, leading to a loss of expertise.
• Importance of Retention: The Army values deployment experience, which can be used for promotion purposes. Retaining experienced soldiers through SELRES affiliation is crucial to maintain operational readiness.
• Strategic Implications: The document suggests that analyzing the value of different types of deployment experience could help the Army strategically retain and transfer knowledge to new recruits. It also recommends that the Army consider training programs to preserve skills as operational experience declines.

Key Information

• Total Deployment Experience: 1.65 million troop-years from 2001 to 2012.
• Experience Retention: About 60 percent of this experience remained in the Army by December 2012.
• Transition Rates: Only 20–35 percent of soldiers leaving the Regular Army affiliate with the SELRES.
• Experience Loss: By December 2012, 65 percent of soldiers leaving the Army had some deployment experience.
• Future Trends: The Army is expected to lose more than half of its deployment experience over the next five years due to the end of combat operations in Afghanistan and the continued decline in SELRES affiliations.

Conclusion

The U.S. Army has contributed significantly to U.S. deployments since 9/11, but it is now facing a decline in deployment-related experience due to fewer deployments and increased separations. To mitigate this loss, the Army must strategically retain experienced soldiers through SELRES affiliations and transfer knowledge to new recruits. Understanding the relative value of different deployment experiences is essential for force management and operational readiness.